Writers' Workshop
Faculty and Courses
Plant the Novel and Watch It Grow with Darnell Arnoult
Course ID # 11575
Have you been dreaming of writing a novel? Do you carry the seed of a novel in your pocket? Do the stick-tights of character voices cling to the bottom of your trousers? Are you waiting to get the whole story worked out before you take action? WAIT! I mean, DON'T WAIT! Learn how to write toward your novel and discover the story that teases your imagination and hides in your subconscious aching to grow toward the light, to blossom. In this class we will examine where novel ideas come from; explore how to plant those ideas on the page; experiment with how to fertilize, weed, propagate, prune; how to enjoy the work of gardening itself, but with an eye on harvest time, when the fruit of our labor can be shared with others. All that's required for this workshop is a love a stories, a desire to write, and the notion that you carry the possibility of a novel (or novels) in your soul, or at least in your pocket.
Darnell Arnoult was born and raised in Henry County, Virginia on the Eastern slope of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Her novel Sufficient Grace (Free Press/Simon & Schuster) debuted in hardcover in June 2006 to excellent reviews, including a starred review in Publisher's weekly. Sufficient Grace has now been issued in paperback (Free Press/Simon & Schuster) and as an audio book (Recorded Books).
Arnoult's debut poetry collection, What Travels With Us: Poems (LSU Press, 2005) was named SIBA Poetry Book of the Year and won the 2005 Weatherford Award for Appalachian Literature in the category of poetry and fiction from Berea College and the Appalachian Studies Association. Her fiction and poetry have appeared in a variety of journals including Nantahala Review, Southern Cultures, Southwest Review, Southern Exposure, Asheville Poetry Review, Sandhills Review, Brightleaf: A Southern Review of Books, Sow's Ear, and Now and Then Magazine. Arnoult has over fifteen years of experience teaching and coaching creative writing and creative practice, and is a regular faculty member of the Duke Writers Workshop and the Tennessee Young Writers Workshop. She holds a BA in American Studies with a concentration in Southern Folklore from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and MA in English and lives with her husband William Brock in Smith County, Tennessee. She is currently at work on her second novel. www.darnellarnoult.com
The Language of Poetry with Michael Chitwood
Course ID # 11576
"Poetry begins to atrophy when it gets too far from music," says Erza Pound. The focus of this workshop will be giving the language of our poems the best music for their tones and meanings. We will discuss examples from well-known writers and have some in class exercises each day. This course will be useful to beginning and seasoned poets as well as prose writers who want to take a fresh look at their work through the lens of poetry. Participants should plan to bring 10 copies of up to four poems or four prose excerpts (no more than one double spaced page per prose sample) to be workshopped in class with an eye toward more musicality and precision in the use of language.
Born and raised in the hills of the Virginia Blue Ridge, Michael Chitwood is now a free-lance writer and a visiting lecturer at the University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill. His poetry and fiction have appeared in Poetry, The New Republic, Threepenny Review, Virginia Quarterly Review, Field, The Georgia Review and numerous other journals. Ohio Review Books has published two books of his poetry--Salt Works (1992) and Whet (1995). His third book, The Weave Room, was published by The University of Chicago Press in the Phoenix Poets series (1998). His collection of essays, Hitting Below the Bible Belt,was published by Down Home Press in 1998. Gospel Road Going, a collection of poems about his native Appalachia,was published in 2002 and was awarded the 2003 Roanoke-Chowan Prize for Poetry. In 2006, he published a collection of essays and short stories called Finishing Touches. His collection of poetry From Whencewas released in March 2007 from Louisiana State University Press. Tupelo Press published his most recent book Spill in October of 2007.
Finishing Your Novel with Pamela Duncan
Course ID #11578
“Writing a book is like driving a car at night. You only see as far as your headlights go, but you can make the whole trip that way.” (E.L. Doctorow)
The word “novel” may be small, but it feels like a mighty big thing to take on. That’s because it is. But that doesn’t mean you can’t do it. When I started my first novel, I was too terrified to call it a novel. My workshop instructors would say, “So, you’re working on a novel,” at which point I’d panic and say, “No, no. Chunks. I have these chunks.” What do you do with chunks? How do you push through to the end and finish what you’ve started? In this workshop, we’ll explore those questions and more. We’ll talk about craft and storytelling, and we’ll spend time writing because that’s how a novel really gets done, by putting down the words, one after another. In addition to discussing finishing a first draft, we’ll also talk about revision, the real “finishing” of a novel.
This course is for anyone who has started a novel, anyone who has chunks and needs guidance, inspiration, reassurance, and encouragement to keep going. My goal is for every participant to finish the week with new writing, new ideas, and new enthusiasm for the process of writing a novel.
By April 10, 2008, please send up to 15 pages of your novel (double-spaced, 12 point type) to Pamela Duncan, 6367 Lindley Mill Road, Graham, NC 27253. I'll return these pages to you, with my detailed written comments, at the workshop. If you have questions, feel free to email me at pduncan@email.unc.edu.
Novelist Pamela Duncan was born in Asheville and grew up in Black Mountain, Swannanoa, and Shelby, North Carolina. She holds a B.A. in journalism from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an M.A. in English/Creative Writing from North Carolina State University in Raleigh. She lives in Alamance County, North Carolina.
Her first novel, Moon Women, was a Southeastern Booksellers Association (now Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance) Award Finalist, and her second novel, Plant Life, won the 2003 Sir Walter Raleigh Award for Fiction. She is the recipient of the 2007 James Still Award for Writing about the Appalachian South, awarded by the Fellowship of Southern Writers. Her third novel, The Big Beautiful, was published in March 2007. Visit Pam's website at http://www.pameladuncan.com.
Memoir with Judy Goldman
Course ID # 11577
It was Mary McCarthy who said, "I can't help plagiarizing from real life." In this workshop (for both beginning and advanced writers), you'll learn how to craft your memoir into something of value for others. We'll discuss coming up with that seductive beginning sentence or paragraph, finding your way into your voice, setting scenes as though you're writing fiction, using dialogue, turning the people in your life into characters that readers care about. I'll encourage you to have a naive faith in yourself, a sense of optimism about your work so that you can keep going even when you know you're about to step off the edge of the world. We'll explore establishing a writing schedule that works for you and making time to write. I'll address truth vs. betrayal -- how much to reveal about people close to you. I'll give publishing advice. Class will include exercises to help you discover your most engaging material. Bring 13 copies to Kanuga of 2 double-spaced pages of your memoir for group discussion and critique. Send 15 double-spaced pages (which include the 2 pages you're bringing for group discussion) in 12 point type or larger to me at 1121 Scotland Ave., Charlotte, NC 28207 by April 8. I'll return these 15 pages to you -- with my detailed written comments -- at the workshop. Questions? Email me at: judygoldman@earthlink.net
Judy Goldman is the author of a memoir she's now revising, two published novels, and two published books of poetry. Her latest novel, Early Leaving (published by William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins) was called "masterfully written and fast-paced - highly recommended" by Library Journal. Her first novel, The Slow Way Back (Morrow), won the Sir Walter Raleigh Fiction Award, Mary Ruffin Poole First Fiction Award, and was a finalist for the Southeast Booksellers Association's Novel of the Year. Her work has appeared in The Washington Post, Southern Review, Gettysburg Review, Ohio Review, Prairie Schooner, Shenandoah, Kenyon Review, and other literary journals. A long-time teacher, Judy received the Fortner Writer and Community Award for "outstanding generosity to other writers and the larger community." www.judygoldman.com